New Push To Counter Anti-Israel Boycott Movement On U.S. College Campuses

MATTHIEU ALEXANDRE/AFP/Getty29 Mar 2016

JERUSALEM (AP) — The head of an organization representing Jewish communities worldwide says it is launching a new initiative to counter the anti-Israel boycott movement on college campuses.

Ron Lauder, chairman of the World Jewish Congress, says his group will dispatch activists to as many as two dozen campuses around the world to train students on how to organize and respond to anti-Israel activity. He says he expects the initiative to begin next fall.

The BDS movement promotes boycotts, divestment and sanctions against Israel in what it says is a nonviolent struggle against Israeli occupation. In recent years, it has made gains on U.S. campuses.

In an interview Monday, Lauder accuses the BDS campaign of trying to destroy Israel, saying “we will fight them, and we will win.”